Dreams Are Colder Than Death

The story

What does it mean to be Black in America in the 21st century? The recently formed Black American film group TNEG™ has set out to elucidate this very question. Hearing from the likes of fine artist Kara Walker and musical artist Flying Lotus, the film is based on a deceptively simple approach -- asking a refined list of black 'specialists' as well as 'uncommon folks' questions about what they think, and more importantly as lead director Arthur Jafa states, 'What they KNOW' -- the film is an unprecedented 'stream of the black consciousness' and a strikingly original and rarefied look at black intellectual and emotional life. What's so unorthodox about this simple approach is that the interviews were recorded separately from the images in the film. What results is a breathtaking, kaleidoscopic look of American black life from the dawn of three original filmmakers.

Cast & crew

Charles BurnettSelf

Hortense Spillers

Hortense SpillersSelf

Saidiya Hartman

Saidiya HartmanSelf

Kathleen CleaverSelf

Fred Moten

Fred MotenSelf

Flying LotusSelf

Storyboard P.

Storyboard P.Self

Kara Walker

Kara WalkerSelf